2021
Elona Mbayise Distinction
Modelling the spread of COVID-19 in South Africa using stratified compartmental models (March – August 2020). I also helped secure funding for her research.
Supervision
Currently supervising 1 PhD and 1 MSc student. Completed: 13 Honours and 1 MSc (with distinction).
Honours, Masters and PhD students supervised by Dr Raeesa Manjoo-Docrat at the University of the Witwatersrand.
My students work on infectious disease modelling, spatial statistics and wastewater-based epidemiology. They have placed 1st, 2nd and 3rd (twice) in the South African Statistical Association (SASA) Honours competitions between 2021 and 2026.
Masters
Honours
2025
Odey Mofokeng 3rd place, SASA 2025/26 · Refining wastewater surveillance through regression kriging: a geostatistical approach to spatial prediction and public health applications
Gabriel Gordon and Dylan Kruger · The spatial risk analysis of disease outbreaks in South Africa
2023
Miguel Torres 3rd place, SASA 2023/24
Spatial modelling of COVID-19 using wastewater data in the presence of spatially misaligned data. Since published in Spatial Statistics (2026).
2022
James Silinda · Sentiment analysis and exploratory spatial data analysis of vaccinations and vaccine hesitancy
Sboniso Shandu · Comparing deterministic and stochastic models for the spread of tuberculosis
2021
Mohamed Rameez Amod 1st place, SASA 2021/22 · Assessing COVID-19 vaccination allocation strategies in South Africa
Jadine Chetty · Comparison of models for the pneumonic plague in Johannesburg (1904)
Kabelo Mphelo · Stochastic modelling of infectious diseases
Nelebogo Kgohlo · Spatio-temporal modelling of sexual crimes in South Africa
2020
UkuKhanya Khumalo 2nd place, SASA 2020/21 · Spatial and spatio-temporal modelling of housebreakings in South African district municipalities (2014–2016)
Rendani Ngwagwe Outstanding project · Stochastic epidemic models of the transmission dynamics of Ebola
Luvo Ndzendze · Modelling share prices using time series
Looking ahead
I run regular research meetings with my postgraduate students through SEPIMOD. I care about making STEM careers open to all South Africans, particularly women. Through STEM MentHer and a proposed Elsevier Foundation programme, I am building structured support for women moving from Honours into academia. If you would like to work with me, see Join.